The Wrong Box main backdrop
The Wrong Box main poster

The Wrong Box

Visit website

6.5/10 • 58

1966-06-191h 45m

Comedy

In Victorian England, a fortune now depends on which of two brothers outlives the other—or can be made to have seemed to do so.

Directors
Bryan Forbes
Writters
Burt Shevelove, Larry Gelbart
Editors
Burt Shevelove, Larry Gelbart, Alan Osbiston

Top Billed Cast

View Credits
  1. John Mills

    John Mills

    Masterman Finsbury

  2. Ralph Richardson

    Ralph Richardson

    Joseph Finsbury

  3. Michael Caine

    Michael Caine

    Michael Hubert Gregory Finsbury

  4. Peter Cook

    Peter Cook

    Morris Finsbury

  5. Dudley Moore

    Dudley Moore

    John Finsbury

  6. Nanette Newman

    Nanette Newman

    Julia Finsbury

  7. Tony Hancock

    Tony Hancock

    Detective

  8. Peter Sellers

    Peter Sellers

    Doctor Pratt

  9. Cicely Courtneidge

    Cicely Courtneidge

    Major Martha

Reviews1

View Reviews
CinemaSerf Avatar

CinemaSerf

Sep 14, 2023

6/10

Bryan Forbes is to be commended for assembling a glittering cast in this rather plodding adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's novel. It centres around the fate of a £20,000 fortune - the result of a tontine between 20 families who each invested £1,000 in a lottery than would provide the entire fund for whichever of their young children survived! Over the course of time, nature takes it's course until, sixty years later, we are left with two brothers. "Masterman" (John Mills) and "Joseph" (Sir Ralph Richardson). The former is a conspiring old fellow who really cares about the cash - a feeling shared by his plotting grandson "Michael" (Michael Caine). The latter - who doesn't really care about the cash - a rather charming old buffoon with a tale to tell of just about everything, being kept going for as long as possible by his scheming nephews Peter Cook ("Morris"), Dudley Moore ("John") and charming neice Nanette Newman ("Julia"). The scene is now set for a series of lightly amusing escapades with a few cameos from (policeman) Tony Hancock, (doctor) Peter Sellers and a wonderfully paced (quite literally) effort from Wilfred Lawson as the butler "Peacock" leading to a rather farcical conclusion in a graveyard. It is certainly a great looking film, John Barry provides one of his less distinctive scores and the film really moves along quickly. It just wasn't funny. The impending jokes could be seen from space, and aside from Lawson, and Sir Ralph's nigh on perfect portrayal of the doting old "Joseph", the characters provide more for a star-studded gathering for the sake it it, rather for the cohesiveness of the (admittedly quite fun) plot. Not one of RLS's finest stories, this - it tries to ridicule the "virtues" of 19th century Britain, but this production lacks subtlety, wit to achieve that goal. It really overcooks the perceived eccentricities of the characters - especially with Messrs. Cook and Moore. There was a certain style of comedy and comedian prevailing in the UK in the 1960s - fans of which may get much more from this. As it is, though, I struggled with it.

Media

  • The Wrong Box poster
  • The Wrong Box poster
  • The Wrong Box poster
  • The Wrong Box poster
  • The Wrong Box poster

Recommendations

  • The Umbrellas of Cherbourg main backdrop

    The Umbrellas of Cherbourg

    7.4

  • The Young and the Damned main backdrop

    The Young and the Damned

    8.1

  • The Mephisto Waltz main backdrop

    The Mephisto Waltz

    6.1

  • No Backdrop

    The Devil's Toy Box

    4.9

  • No Backdrop

    Survival Box

    6.1

  • Son of the Congo main backdrop

    Son of the Congo

    6.0

  • Layer Cake main backdrop

    Layer Cake

    6.9

  • Joker main backdrop

    Joker

    8.1

  • Chungking Express main backdrop

    Chungking Express

    8.0

  • Parasite main backdrop

    Parasite

    8.5

  • Dune: Part Two main backdrop

    Dune: Part Two

    8.1

  • Django Unchained main backdrop

    Django Unchained

    8.2

  • The Godfather main backdrop

    The Godfather

    8.7

  • Pulp Fiction main backdrop

    Pulp Fiction

    8.5

  • Eyes Wide Shut main backdrop

    Eyes Wide Shut

    7.5

  • Godzilla Minus One main backdrop

    Godzilla Minus One

    7.6

  • Fight Club main backdrop

    Fight Club

    8.4

  • Bones and All main backdrop

    Bones and All

    7.1

  • The Shawshank Redemption main backdrop

    The Shawshank Redemption

    8.7

  • Avatar: The Way of Water main backdrop

    Avatar: The Way of Water

    7.6

Status
Released
Original Language
English
Budget
--
Revenue
--
Keywords
based on novel or bookdark comedyvictorian englandqueen of england19th century